At the moment, there are almost no countries in the world that are not marked with the stigma of COVID-19. Somewhere the epidemic is only gaining momentum (Russia, the USA, Great Britain), somewhere it is at its peak (Italy, Spain, Germany, France), and somewhere it has been brought under control and the growth rate in the number of cases is significantly weakening or has completely decreased. no - China, South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan, Montenegro.
Some positive news is also coming from countries that have been hit the hardest by the coronavirus. The Spanish parliament extended the state of emergency for another 15 days, but Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said: "The fire is under our control." President of the Institute of Health Silvio Bruzaferro (Italy) pointed out that the slowdown in the spread of the virus in the Apennines is obvious, and the number of cases is declining every day, as is the number of intensive care patients.
From April 14 in Italy, they plan to open small shops with stationery and bookshops. Austria and the Czech Republic are also planning to open some small shops next week. In Denmark, schools and kindergartens will open from April 15, in Norway - from April 20. German Health Minister Jens Spahn said that if a similar trend in the number of new cases continues and there are no new surges, then after Easter a “gradual return to normal” is possible.
With this picture in front of you, you can make some preliminary forecasts for the summer. Although experts from different countries agree that the situation is now changing hourly and sometimes completely unpredictable, some cautious forecasts for the summer period are nonetheless expressed. So let's take a look main tourist destinations in Europe.
1. Spain. In second place after the United States in terms of the number of infected - 163,027 and in 3rd place in terms of the number of deaths - 16,606. However, as we have already considered, there is also a positive trend. In order to avoid a second wave of infections, Spain will close its borders for the summer season and begin to develop domestic tourism, according to the ABC newspaper.
2. Italy. In third place after the United States in terms of the number of infected - 152,271, but in 1st place in terms of the number of deaths - 19,468. And in this country, positive dynamics has been noticed in reducing the pace of the spread of the pandemic; It is planned to start production from May 3rd. Tourism association president Lorenza Bonaccorsi said it "will take one or even two years to get back to where it was before" and the 2020 season is likely to "be written off". Italy also intends to develop domestic tourism in 2020 without opening external borders.
3. France. In 4th place in terms of the number of infected - 130,730 and in 3rd place in terms of the number of deaths - 13,832. Quarantine in the country is valid until April 15, but most likely it will be extended until the end of the month. Prime Minister Edouard Philippe, in a speech to the National Assembly on Wednesday, said: "No country has ever restricted so many people and so widely" and, therefore, "no country has released such a number of people at the same time" after the quarantine was lifted. The point is that the country will begin to lift restrictive measures gradually and very carefully. “Ideally, we will release those who have already had COVID-19 first, but this measure will require immediate testing of all other citizens in a short period of time.” In general, France is optimistic about the summer season and considers it quite feasible.
4. Greece. A rather small number of infected people has been registered in the country - 2,081, deaths - 94. The situation is generally stable and a slowdown in the spread of the virus is noticeable (see graph). From March 8, Greece began to introduce quarantine and fines for non-compliance with the rules - even Metropolitan Seraphim was arrested for several hours for holding a service in the temple during the current quarantine. Ferdinando Giugliano writes (for Bloomberg): “Greece has become a notable and even surprising exception” in a number of European countries that are not coping well with the pandemic. “The government introduced strict social distancing measures at a much earlier stage of the epidemic than in other southern European countries. For now, this quick response has helped Greece avoid the tragic health crisis facing richer nations.” Many experts believe that Greece has every chance of a successful summer season.
5. Montenegro. Only 267 infected people have been registered in the country, of which 4 have been detected today. Montenegro from the very beginning began to pursue a proactive policy: a strict quarantine regime was introduced even before the first cases of infection were detected. Hard quarantine in the country has been going on for a month and has been extended until the end of April. Considering that the country is completely dependent on tourism, the inhabitants of the country approached the quarantine measures with all responsibility and almost all of them are fully observed. Thanks to this, in recent days the number of infected people has been minimal - +2, +5, +4 (see graph). Director of the Institute of Health Boban Mugosha said that quarantine measures will be gradually lifted from the end of May. Montenegro, despite the global pandemic, is preparing for the season: work has begun on the improvement of an 8,000 m2 embankment in the Slovenska Obala area in Budva, where a park area and a large playground will be located; in Tivat, large-scale work is underway on the roads, new interchanges are being built; in Kotor, the problem with terrible traffic jams will finally be solved - an underground tunnel is being laid from the pier to the Old Town. Montenegro is doing everything possible to make the summer season 2020 a reality.
